“The role of each city and its governance in creating an inclusive environment and eliminating inequality is extremely important. Tbilisi has a long history of creating cultural diversity and an equal environment, although there are issues in which our capital is still inexperienced. My team and I work for real changes on a daily basis. However, our goal is only local. The OECD Champion Mayors initiative allows me to make my contribution to the elimination of inequality globally, both by gaining new experiences and by sharing the unique experiences of my city.”
– Mayor Kakha Kaladze
Kakha Kaladze is member of the Dream party and a former footballer of Italian club AC Milan. He retired from football in 2012 and became involved in the politics of Georgia as a member of the opposition Georgian Dream–Democratic Georgia party, founded by Bidzina Ivanishvili in February 2012. He was elected to the Parliament of Georgia on October 1, 2012 and became Deputy Prime Minister as well as Minister of Energy in Ivanishvili’s cabinet on October 25, 2012. He continued to occupy both positions under the succeeding cabinet of Giorgi Kvirikashvili until July 2017, when he resigned to run for the Mayor of Tbilisi as a Georgian Dream candidate.
Tbilisi City Hall has been carrying out an ambitious campaign to turn Tbilisi green. Thousands of trees, bushes, flowers, and grassy areas have been planted throughout the city. Recently, a 6,000 square metre area along Chavchavadze Avenue of Tbilisi’s Vake district 2,500 bushes were planted as part of the ‘Care About the City’ campaign. Tbilisi City Hall continues to modernise the streets of the Georgian capital through the development of infrastructure and green spaces, making them more suitable for the citizens of the city. In 2020, Tbilisi City Hall allocated 7 million GEL from its budget for renovation works. A new one-kilometre-long bicycle lane has created on Kostava and Shartava streets. Additionally, a bus lane has also been introduced which will be used only for public transport vehicles – buses and minibuses (marshrutkas).
Tbilisi City Hall has launched a campaign to provide food and essentials to socially vulnerable lonely elderly people. Private companies such as Duty Free Georgia, SkyTel, MasterCard and Carrefour Companies joined the assistance program for single seniors and other vulnerable groups. ”We continue our newsworthy project by giving food to the socially vulnerable and providing assistance to the people who are most in need”- said Kakha Kaladze.
More than 35 000 socially disadvantaged households living in Tbilisi have received assistance in the first phase of the campaign. The packages they receive contain a 10-day supply of food and medicine, and have been provided by trained volunteers.
The Mayor of Tbilisi has given certificates of home ownership at the symbolic price of one GEL to citizens who have been struggling with property legalisation for years. This initiative has made home ownership official, and provided much reassurance, for almost 900 families. “Today, we have regulated the situation of 27 families living in Samgori district. These people have lived in their apartments for years and, for some reason, they have not been able to legalise their situation. I promised the population we would create a program for all the families and people who suffer from a similar problem, through which we would solve this issue. Everyone who suffers from this problem should definitely apply to the district administration, where they will explain the procedures required for the legalisation of property”, – said Mayor Kakha Kaladze.